Prepayment gas-meter.



No. 660,234. Patented on. 23,1900.

I c. WHITHAM & E. LARGE.

PBEPAYMENT GAS METER.

(A lication filed July 2'5, 1899.)

2 Sheets-Sheet l.

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C. WHITHAM &. E. LARGE.

PREPAYMENT GAS METER.

(Application filed July 25, 1899.)

(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

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UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

CHALLENGER \VHITHAM AND EDWARD LARGE, OF OLDHAM, ENGLAND.

PREPAYMENT GAS-METER.

SPEGIFIGATION forining part of Letters Patent No. 660,234, dated October 23, 1900-.

Application filed July 25, 1899. Serial No. 725,043. (No model.) 7

To an whom it may concern/.

Be it known that we, CHALLENGER WHIT- HAM and EDWARD LARGE, subjects of the Queen of Great Britain, residing at Oldham, in the county of Lancaster, England, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Prepayment Gas-Meters, for which the following is a specification.

Application for patent has been filed by us in Great Britain, dated the 16th of March, 1899, and numbered 5,708

This invention relates to gas-meters delivering a predetermined quantity of gas against prepayment made by means of coins inserted into a slot; and it consists in improved arrangements or combinations of mechanism for actuating the gas-valve and opening the gas-inlet by means of the coins inserted into the same.

On the drawings appended hereunto, Figure 1 shows a vertical section of the prepayment mechanism along the center line of the valve and spindle; Fig. 2, a front view of the same; Fig. 3, a vertical cross-section along line :10 a: of Fig. 1; Fig. 4:, a section of the coincarrier in the coin-delivering position; Fig. 5, a plan of the prepayment mechanism and gas-meter-index mechanism.

The prepayment mechanism is shown applied to a dry meter, but is equally applicable to a wet meter. 7

In carrying out our invention we arrange in the meter-case a slot and chute a for the insertion of the coins and below the same a horizontal, preferably cylindrical, coin-carrier:

b, fitted with a knob or handle I), on the spindle b projecting to the outside of the casing, and arrange pegs c and c 'on the cylinder abutting against suitable stops, so that the coin-carrier can be turned forward and backward between said stops for rather more than half a revolution. The coin-carrier is slotted through, the slot 11 being of such length at the top side that the coin to be used with the apparatus-for instance, a penny can drop into the slot and of narrower length at the lower side, so that a coin of the correct value does not drop through, while a smaller coina halfpenny, for instance drops through into the cash-box. The diameter of the cylindrical coin-carrier is such that the coin when .level with the top side projects on the under side, as'shown on Fig. 3.

Parallel to the coin-carrier we arrange a shaft carrying a spider d, with curved arms,

\ and below the coin-carrier we pivot a pawl e them, 61 while the tip of the preceding arm d rests upon the surface of the coin-carrier,

the spider thus being prevented from turning in the direction of the arrow on Fig. 3 while the meter is delivering gas. When the coincarrier is turned after the insertion of a coin in the direction indicated by the arrow, the projecting part of the coin m first pushes the part c of the pawl. back and the part a out of the path of the spider-arm d and then seizes under the convex side of the arm d and turns the spider, the upper part of the coin-slot 19 passing under a cylindrical segment f, fixed to the casing, during this movement to prevent the protruding part of the coin from beforward, the pawl drops back into its former position and arrests the further movement by catching the arm 01 The arm at, seized by the coin, will then be in a position shown on Fig. 4 and as the coin-cylinder is turned a little farther, till the peg 0 comes against the slot side f, will push in the projecting part of the coin, the other side of the coin-slot clearing the segmental cover f at the same time, so that the coin drops out of the slot into the cash box' placed below. The coin-carrier is notched out at the side of the projecting coins to allow the arms of the spider to pass. As will be seen on Fig. 4, the next arm d enters a little into this-notch, and as the coin-carrier after delivery of the coin is turned back the arm will also be turned back, so as to rest against the cylindrical surface of the carrier in the same position as the-arm d on Fig. 3, the spider being thus turned exactly by one arm or division for each coin paid in.

The spindle g of the spider d is out with a quick screw-thread and a cylindrical nut his placed thereon, having fixed to it at one end the gas-valve h and at the other end a spurwheel 2', engaging into a long pinion It, placed parallel to the spindle g, which pinion is r0 tated from the index-driving shaft 1 of the gas-meter through the bevel-wheels Z l n n and when gas is consumed turns the nut in such a direction that it moves the valve toward its seating when the screw-spindle is stationary-that is to say, in the same direction as the spider is turned by the coin-while the turning of the spindle by a coin inserted draws the nut h and valve 71 away from.

the seating, the nut being prevented from turning by the wheel '2; and pinion 7c. The gas enters from the inlet-pipe 19 through the valve-seatingp into a gas-light chamber communicating through the opening 19 with the inlet to the gas-meter bellows or drum, and a stuffing-box 0 is arranged for the cylindrical nut to pass through into this chamber. For each additional coin inserted the valve is drawn farther away from its seating, and in order to close it the meter must deliver a quantity of gas corresponding with the number of coins inserted. When the valve is brought against its seating, the delivery of gas is stopped even if there should be some leakage of the valve, as the friction of the valve on its seating will prevent the further rotation of the nut, and thereby arrest the motion of the index-driving mechanism and the bellows or drum of the meter.

The bevel-wheel n on the spindle of the long pinion 7c is made exchangeable in order to be able to vary the quantity of gas delivered for each coin.

If an attempt is made to tamper with the meter by inserting, for instance, a coin attached to a string, the arm (1 could be partly moved around without letting the coin drop out of the coin-slot in the carrier; but the coin could not be withdrawn Without moving the carrier back into its starting position, and by this motion the arm cl would also be pushed back into its starting position.

While gas is consumed, the friction of the screw-spindle gin the nut It tends to turn the spindle and spider in the same direction as it is turned by the coin, so that the arm in contact with the coin-carrier is held against it in the position shown on Fig. 3, and the exact delivery of the predetermined quantity of gas for each coin inserted is assured thereby. Obviously it is not necessary that the entire coincarrier should have a cylindrical form, but only those parts of its surface whichact upon the arms of the spider and pawl.

To the nut h a rack r is connected, so as to be taken along with it withoutbeing rotated, and this rack gears with a pinion 0", which drives a crown-wheel r on the spindle s of the index-finger s, by which the number of coins on the quantity of gas paid for but not consumed is indicated in the usual way.

We claim as our invention-- 1. In a prepaymen t-meter, the combination of a horizontal coin-carrier slotted so as to retain the coin protruding at the under side of the carrier, means for oscillating the carrier from the outside, a spider-wheel actuated by the projecting coin and advanced by one arm for each oscillation of the carrier, a pawl engaging directly with and adapted to arrest the spider-wheel in a position to press the coin partly out of the slot during the oscillation of the carrier, and a segmental shield for retaining the coin in its position in the carrier while actuating said spider-wheel, the protruding coin being adapted to release the pawl from the spider-wheel slightly in advance of the rotation of the spider-wheel by the coin.

2. In a prepayment-meter the combination of a spider-wheel and an oscillating coin-carrier slotted so as to retain the coin level with one side and protruding at the other, and notched out at the sides of the protruding coin for allowing the coin to drive the spiderwheel, the carrier and spider-wheel being so placed that when the coin has advanced one arm of the spider the next following arm has entered the notch and is pushed back by the return oscillation of the carrier.

3. In a prepayment-meter the combination of a screw-spindle rotated for an equal angle by each coin inserted, a cylindrical nut thereon, a gas-inlet valve fixed to the nut at one end so as to rotate with the same, a spur-wheel fixed to the nut and gearing with a long pinion which is rotated from the index-driving shaft of the meter in such a direction that the nut is rotated in the same direction as the screw-spindle is rotated by the coin.

4. The combination with a gas-meter of a casing having a'slot for the insertion of a coin, a horizontal coin-carrier slotted so as to retain the coin level with the top side and protruding at the under side of the carrier, a knob for oscillating the coin-carrier from the outside of the casing, stops for limiting the oscillation, a spider-wheel mounted upon a screw-spindle and actuated by the projecting coin so as to be advanced by one arm for each oscillation of the carrier, a pawl arresting the movement of the spider and disengaged by the coin, a segmental shield for retaining the coin in its position in the carrier while actuating said pawl and spider-wheel, a cylin drical nut mounted on the said screw-spindle, a gas-inlet valve immovably fixed to the end of the nut, a spur-wheel fixed on the nut, and gearing with a long pinion rotated from the index-driving shaft of the gas-meter in such a direction that the said nut is rotated in the same direction as the said screw-spindle is rotated by the coin.

5. In a prepayment-meter, the combination of a horizontal coin-carrier slotted soas to retain the coin protruding at the underside of the carrier, means for oscillating the carrier from the outside, a spider-wheel actuated by the projecting coin and advanced by one arm for each oscillation of the carrier, a forked pawl adapted to arrest, by one prong, the

spider-wheel in such a position that the coin is pressed partly out of the slot during the oscillation of the carrier, and by the other prong to prevent the coin being turned backward after passing the same, a segmental shield for retaining the coin in its position in the carrier while actuating said spider-Wheel, the protruding coin being adapted to release the pawl from the spider=wheel slighly in advance of the rotation of the spider-Wheel by the coin, and a stop for stopping the rotation of the carrier before the slot therein is in line with the entrance-slot provided in the casing of the device. 1

In testimony whereof we have hereunto set I5 our hands in the presence of two WitIlGSSGS;

CHALLENGER WHITHAM. EDWARD LARGE.

Witnesses:

Q; BoLLE, R. J. URQUHART. 

